Inspired by teachers, RIT grad opens music studio to teach others

With an influx of new endowed professorships, RIT is retaining and attracting all-star faculty. Today, there are 51 endowed professorships at RIT. Thirteen of those have been established since 2017. These named professorships help provide both the recognition and the resources that the highest caliber faculty and experts in their field deserve. “Our talented faculty enrich our students,” said Prabu David, provost and senior vice president for Academic Affairs. “In addition to imparting their subject matter expertise, they have a profound impact as mentors. Our faculty foster critical thinking, effective communication and collaboration, and ethical decision making, and they address the student as a whole person.” Internationally recognized faculty members are paramount to RIT’s success—especially as the university continues bringing in top-tier undergraduate students, expands the graduate program portfolio, and advances research plans. While scholarships play a crucial role in helping students pursue their dreams, endowed professorships have a ripple effect that can impact thousands in the broader university and Rochester communities. Endowments create a source of funding in perpetuity that helps support faculty salaries, research, and passions. Endowed professors with active research portfolios bring in top research students. They also tend to have existing collaborations with other top-100 universities. “It’s a tool for retention, as well as recruitment,” said Phil Castleberry, vice president for University Advancement. “For junior faculty considering where to launch their careers, a university that offers a number of endowed professorships is very appealing.” RIT’s endowed professorships are typically created with a gift of $1.5 million or more. In recent years, RIT’s Board of Trustees has matched $1 million gifts with an additional $2 million in order to create endowed professorships worth $3 million. At each installation ceremony, RIT’s endowed professors are awarded a special medallion. Many honorees invite loved ones and recount the people and work that supported them along their professional journeys. When Billy Brumley was named the inaugural Kevin O’Sullivan Endowed Professor in Cybersecurity, he invited and spoke about his mother, who inspired him to become a second- generation professor. That endowed professorship was made possible by a gift from alumnus Austin McChord ’09 and was named to honor a teacher who inspired McChord to achieve great things. With the endowment, Brumley has been able to build and ramp up his platform security research laboratory on campus. He said the biggest influence is the ability to hire early career researchers. “Staffing at this level is atypical for an academic startup package,” said Brumley. “This endowment is like a turbo button on a video game controller, except for research excellence.” In the future, RIT plans to expand endowed professorships with cluster hires in specific areas, such as artificial intelligence and film and animation. “I’d like for that to be our next chapter,” said Castleberry. “Identify experts in a particular discipline and provide them the opportunity to come build their world-class research together at RIT.”

RIT’s athletics teams have been a powerhouse over the past decade, and now they’re getting the facilities to match their success. At the northern end of campus, a new facility for track and field welcomes visitors. Nearby, newly installed all-weather turf fields now cover the softball and baseball diamonds, allowing for play during Rochester’s spring months. Indoors, the iconic Ritter Arena has undergone a dramatic transformation—trading its ice rink for a turf field, offering a space for year-round activities. Clark Gym, one of the university’s earliest athletics venues, has a new floor. The old floor dated back to the 1960s. Tiger Stadium, home to the soccer and lacrosse teams, is scheduled to open in January 2026 following the completion of this $30 million project. This investment of more than $50 million has positioned RIT to be recognized as a host for regional and national events in 2028. RIT Athletics will host the NCAA Division I Men’s Ice Hockey Regional at the Blue Cross Arena in downtown Rochester, and Tiger Stadium will be the site of the NCAA Division III Women’s Lacrosse Championship. In addition, the success of the men’s lacrosse team, which has hosted an NCAA tournament game nearly every season since 2010, adds to the growing profile. “These changes give us a better opportunity to talk about RIT on a national level,” said Jacqueline Nicholson, executive director of Intercollegiate Athletics. “People know about our hockey and lacrosse teams, but hosting championship-level events will be huge in elevating our profile.” RIT has two Division I teams—men’s hockey and women’s hockey—and 22 Division III teams. Outside of athletics, thousands of students who participate in club and intramural sports will have access to the new facilities.

Greek Life at RIT has been thriving for generations, offering students places to meet others who share their interests, provide leadership opportunities, and a network of alumni who might be a pathway for a co-op or employment after graduation. The 750 RIT undergraduate students who belong to one of the 28 fraternities or sororities on campus also perform thousands of hours of community service and raise thousands of dollars for charities each year. Informational events are scheduled this month for prospective new members to learn more:Jan. 14, 4-6 p.m., Gordon Field House, Interfraternity Council, the programming and governing body of 10 RIT fraternities. Jan. 21, 5-10 p.m., Fireside Lounge, College Panhellenic Council, the governing body for the five panhellenic sororities at RIT. Jan 30, 6-8 p.m., Fireside Lounge, Multicultural Greek Council, the governing body of 13 culturally-based fraternities and sororities. “We have our own brand of Greek Life here at RIT that is very focused on the service side of things and very different than the Animal House movie image of what some people think a fraternity is,” said Matt Diss, a third-year cybersecurity major from Plum, Pa. “We’re more wholesome. We’re very much a close-knit community where you can build up your network and make lifelong connections that will last long after you graduate.” ‌ Provided Matthew Diss Diss, vice president of RIT Sigma Chi fraternity and Greek Life representative in Student Government, said he didn’t have any intentions of joining a fraternity until he saw some of the events organized on campus. He joined during his freshman year after attending a recruitment meeting. “The brotherhood and philanthropy is what attracted me,” he said. “That group of 30 or 50 guys or girls you know who are always there and you can always count on is great. I’ve gone on spring break every year with brothers from my fraternity.” RIT’s oldest chapter, Phi Sigma Kappa, was founded in 1960. Six of the 28 fraternities or sororities have common housing behind Global Village. Each chapter has its own vetting process for how it accepts members. Some are co-run by students from other area colleges, such as the University of Rochester. Members pay dues and must maintain at least a 2.5 GPA. Most have weekly meetings, fundraising or volunteering activities, and social events. Throughout the year, it’s not unusual to see members host carnival games, pole sits, or even take a sledgehammer to an old car to raise money for charity. In some cases, their national chapter decides the local chapter’s philanthropy. “We’ve donated around $200,000 in the past 10 years to the Huntsman Cancer Institute,” Diss said. ‌ Nate Nesbitt John Serafim arrived in Washington, D.C. last summer after a 67-day, 4,300-mile bike ride from Seattle for the Journey of Hope. He raised nearly $10,000 in pledges for the charity which helps individuals with disabilities. More than 30 RIT students in Pi Kappa Phi have participated in the summer fundraiser in the past 13 years. For the past 13 years, members of RIT’s Pi Kappa Phi chapter, more than 30 in total, have ridden bicycles across the country each summer for the Journey of Hope, which helps individuals with disabilities. John Serafim, a fourth-year mechanical engineering major from Radnor, Pa., was one of three RIT students from the fraternity who participated last summer. He rode 4,300 miles from Seattle to Washington, D.C., in 67 days, raising nearly $10,000 for the charity. “It was incredible. There isn’t a more fulfilling experience that I could possibly think of,” Serafim said. “Doing something super physically challenging every day and having friendship visits along the way with people with disabilities was so emotionally rewarding. Every day I was living with a sense of purpose.” Serafim knew he wanted to join a college fraternity, and said that doing so “has definitely been one of the best decisions I have made at RIT. I can’t speak highly enough of Greek Life at RIT. It enabled me to have this incredible adventure over the summer and made me part of a smaller community at such a big school. I can walk across campus and see people I know.” Phi Delta Theta members raise money for Live Like Lou Foundation, supporting ALS families and research, by lining up quarters on the Quarter Mile. And each autumn, the Zeta Tau Alpha sorority and Phi Kappa Psi fraternity raise around $10,000 for the Hillside Family of Agencies at their popular Mud Tug. Some organizations focus on members who support specific cultures, such as Latino America Unida, Lambda Alpha Upsilon Fraternity, which is a Latino-oriented, but not exclusive, fraternity. “Something that makes us special is our emphasis on academics and leadership,” said Joseph Bean, a third-year computational mathematics major from Houston, Texas. “One of the goals we live by is to support each other personally and academically, and we always try to help each other the best we can in our weekly study hours. Our emphasis on leadership can be showcased around this campus by seeing Hermanos (brothers) taking on key roles, such as being presidents of the Multicultural Greek Council, Latin American Student Association, Alma De Mexico, and a student event manager for RIT’s College Activity Board.” Diss said it’s not unusual for fraternity or sorority members to become leaders in other organizations. “Most people in Greek Life are involved in different aspects of campus, whether it be from new student orientation, to being a tour guide, to Student Government, to working an on-campus job, or being a leader in another club on campus,” he said. For example, Alex Shuron, the president of Sigma Chi, is also this year’s Student Government president. This year’s Student Government vice president is Sophia Pries, also the vice president of communications for her sorority, Zeta Tau Alpha. Another benefit of joining a fraternity or sorority is the ability to network with alumni from RIT or their nationwide chapters. Serafim, for example, attributed getting his co-op in Boston from an RIT alumnus who was also a fraternity brother. ‌ Melanie Ng Each autumn, RIT’s Zeta Tau Alpha sorority and Phi Kappa Psi fraternity organize the popular Mug Tug. Hundreds of students participate, get dirty, and raise around $10,000 for the Hillside Family of Agencies. “You not only have your chapter alumni network, but you have your greater alumni network across the globe,” Diss said. “I’ve reached out to people about job opportunities in their company just through LinkedIn because I’ve noticed they were Sigma Chi. In our chapter, it’s very common for our alumni to say, ‘Hey, my company’s hiring. Send me your resume if you’re interested in a position.’” A recent Gallup poll conducted on behalf of the National Panhellenic Conference and the North American Interfraternity Conference showed that students who graduated in Greek Life reported better college experiences and felt better qualified for life after college and general well-being. More than half also found employment within two months after graduation, compared to 36 percent of non-affiliated alums nationally. Juliana Foster, a second-year biotechnology and molecular biosciences major from Troy, N.Y., said she never thought she would be involved in Greek Life in college, yet joined the Alpha Xi Delta sorority this year because she saw the numerous activities her friends enjoyed. “I heard a lot of great things about Greek Life, and kept seeing all these philanthropic things they were doing,” she said. “I’ve always been involved in community service and I really wanted to continue that in my college experience. Now, it’s one of my favorite things I’ve been involved in. I can’t imagine being without it.” Foster’s sorority has held food drives to benefit the Center for Youth locally, which helps vulnerable children, and raised money with karaoke events for the Foster Club and Stand Up for Kids, a national charity that provides free programs for children and teens in foster care or experiencing homelessness. She’s also visited nursing homes to help residents play bingo and balloon volleyball. Foster says the best part for her “are the connections that I made with the girls in the sorority. They are some of my closest friends. No matter what I want to do, if I reach out to do something, someone’s willing.”

From assisting with animal care at Seneca Park Zoo to using the grounds of the Rochester Museum & Science Center as a research testbed, RIT community members leverage their skills to help others. Connecting with local opportunities to do so is made easier through established relationships with organizations across the Rochester region. The RIT-Genesee Country Village & Museum (GCV&M) Partnership, which is supported by the Philip K. and Anne Wehrheim Endowment, is just one example of how these collaborations provide a two-way bridge of benefits. “We have partnered with dozens of RIT faculty, staff, and students to advance the museum’s work. These collaborations helped us address issues that we didn’t have the time or resources to tackle on our own and provided insights into ways to operate differently,” said Becky Wehle, president and CEO of GCV&M. According to Wehle, GCV&M has collaborated with almost every college within RIT since the start of the partnership in 2016. “Partnerships allow us to more easily connect local institutions with the amazing talent, expertise, and learnability of the RIT community,” said Juilee Decker, director of RIT’s museum studies program and longtime facilitator of the partnership. “The true excitement is seeing how the skills students are learning in their degree programs can transfer to a museum setting and really make a difference.” The outcomes of these local partnerships take many forms. At GCV&M, students have leveraged their digitization expertise to create an accessible, digital tour of the historic village. Partnering with The Strong National Museum of Play formed opportunities for students and faculty members to assist in creating new exhibits, including “Hasbro Board Game Place” and an upcoming exhibit on the “Jewish History of the Toy and Game Industry.” Another unique outcome of RIT’s investment in community partnership is RIT City Art Space, located downtown at the Liberty Pole Plaza. In addition to other community-oriented exhibits and events, City Art Space hosted the “Clarissa Uprooted” exhibit in 2022, which celebrated the historic Clarissa Street neighborhood in Rochester. The project was organized by Rochester Teen Empowerment, whose members served as Youth History Ambassadors to develop the exhibition with elders of the Clarissa Street community. Students and faculty from the College of Art and Design and the College of Liberal Arts worked with them to create the exhibit. “Our central location means we interact more organically and directly with Rochester residents,” said Gallery Director John Aasp. “We also act as an introductory bridge for students and faculty to venture beyond RIT campus life and sample the possibilities of creative involvement in Rochester.” Downtown Rochester News Entrepreneurship Two of RIT’s pathways to entrepreneurship are proving that being in the heart of Rochester has bona fide benefits to success. The Center for Urban Entrepreneurship, dedicated to building wealth within the urban community, relocated to the Downtown Innovation Zone in 2016. Since then, the center has grown to offer customized training, shared workspaces, mentoring, one-on-one consulting, Shark Tank-style pitching competitions, and general education programming–all with the goal of providing support to small businesses. Venture Creations, the university’s business incubator, is reshaping the region’s economy by advancing startups on their way to joining the ranks of viable, profitable businesses. The incubator has graduated 54 companies, with approximately $500 million in total funds raised. K-12 center Educational outreach and college readiness programs give the K-12 University Center a unique role at RIT. The center recently relocated from RIT’s suburban campus to downtown Rochester, giving it greater visibility among its local constituents. The move makes the center more accessible to its community partners and the youth it serves in local schools, including Rochester Prep Charter School.

The curtain is set to rise in 2026 for RIT’s new music performance theater, a 750-seat, 40,000-square-foot complex that will be the first major theater to open in the Rochester area in decades. The theater, which will feature two balconies, a large rehearsal hall, and a fully restored theater pipe organ nearly 100 years old, will be used for student productions and concerts as well as by local performing arts and touring organizations. There are several smaller and larger venues in the Rochester area, but few this size. RIT broke ground for the theater in 2023 to further its commitment to establish RIT as the premier university in the nation working at the intersection of technology, the arts, and design. More than 3,000 performing arts scholarships have been awarded to incoming students in the past six years, encouraging them to pursue their passions in music, theater, dance, and even aerial arts while earning a technical degree. Erica Haskell, director of RIT’s School of Performing Arts, called the theater an inspirational milestone for RIT’s growing population of performing arts students. “Our community of performing artists will continue to thrive as we cultivate diverse opportunities for our students,” Haskell said. “This new venue will serve as the central stage in RIT’s already flourishing performing arts ecosystem, the largest of our performance venues on campus. We anticipate productions and concerts in the music performance theater will be infused with cutting-edge technologies enabled through cross-college interdisciplinary collaborations.” Haskell said RIT’s performing arts ecosystem includes small and large venues, more than 40 performing arts clubs, large and small ensembles, including the RIT Philharmonic Orchestra, numerous dance troupes, and up to six theatrical productions each year, including collaboration between RIT’s National Technical Institute for the Deaf and the School of Performing Arts. Funding for the $74 million theater was approved by RIT’s Board of Trustees and is part of RIT’s approved capital bond project. The new building was designed by renowned Los Angeles-based architect Michael Maltzan and the architect of record is SWBR, a local company that was also the architect of RIT’s MAGIC Spell Studios.

RIT and Rochester Regional Health are partnering to address widespread nursing shortages in the healthcare sector. The alliance aims to enhance programming in the university’s College of Health Sciences and Technology and prepare healthcare professionals to enter the workforce. Career Advantage The diagnostic medical sonography program prepares students for internships at medical facilities, including sites within the Rochester Regional Health system. The partners are exploring opportunities to develop nursing education programs, including an Accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing (ABSN) and a four-year Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN). Plans for a joint Master’s Degree in Nursing (MSN) in health informatics are also under consideration, said Catherine Shannon, executive director of the RIT Rochester Regional Health Alliance. Additional programs under development or discussion are clinical doctorates in occupational therapy and physical therapy. “Anything associated with RIT is going to have an innovative technological twist,” Shannon said. “These programs will be infused with technology, such as informatics. The curriculum will equip students with unique learning experiences and knowledge they can use when they go to their clinical sites.” The alliance is establishing a model for workforce innovation, according to Annette Macias-Hoag, RRH executive vice president and chief nursing and patient care officer. “We are creating a pipeline to address current and future community needs.” Students will gain clinical experience through the health system’s vast care delivery network, comprised of nine hospitals, extended care, urgent care, physician offices, and outpatient specialty services. “Since 2013, the partnership has provided our students with clinical experiences and hired many of our graduates,” said Yong “Tai” Wang, dean of RIT’s College of Health Sciences and Technology. “Many students in our diagnostic medical sonography, physician assistant, nutrition and dietetics, exercise science, and medical illustration programs have learned on site from RRH faculty.” The alliance also provides opportunities for students across the university to engage in innovative projects, Shannon said. Students involved with RIT’s industrial and systems engineering, executive MBA, and multidisciplinary senior design projects work on solutions to challenges identified by Rochester Regional Health employees.